1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a can coiler having an outlet channel for a sliver that is fastened to a turntable or turning ring and follows a circular path whereby calender rolls are disposed before the outlet channel that serve for transporting the sliver. The can coiler is also provided with a stationary sliver cutting device which is provided with a cutting element that is supported in a pivotable manner and is insertable into and retractable from the circular path of the outlet channel in a direction transverse to the longitudinal direction of the sliver.
2. Description of the Related Art
A can coiler of the aforementioned kind is known from DE-OS 28 21 325. The cutting element is provided in the form of a comb. The comb is guided by a rotary magnet and is inserted into the sliver channel in the area of the so called funnel wheel, whereby the sliver channel is provided with a horizontally arranged slot. The sliver which is also called slubbing is essentially torn apart in a manner causing unraveling. The full width of the sliver essentially contacts the respective "obstacle". This has effects on the quality, especially on the uniform structure of the sliver, since the sudden pull is transmitted in a jerky manner into the feeding area. The density of the sliver is thus negatively influenced. Due to the unraveling of the sliver the sliver channel is easily plugged. A cutting device of the aforementioned kind, viewed from the perspective of a gentle and careful cutting, is thus not satisfactory. Furthermore, the cutting device is also disadvantageous with respect to its construction because the sliver cutting device is arranged above the stock head. This results in a space demanding superstructure that limits access especially for cleaning purposes. A sliver cutting device is known from U.S. Pat. No. 3 354 513 in which the cutting element is provided in the form of scissors. Since it is required today that the can coiler exchange takes place at full production speed, the U.S. Pat. No. 3 354 513 does not fulfill these requirements. During an exchange at full production speed 10 to 20 meters of sliver are placed between the can. With this device, the cutting plane is also arranged transverse to the feed direction of the slubbing. One of the sheer blades is stationary and the sliver is passed through underneath The other shear blade is arranged in a pivotable manner with respect to the first sheer blade. The effects of the cutting step should be as disadvantageous as described above but most likely, the respective cutting step must be carried out with the sliver being stopped. This, however, reduces the economy of operation. Finally, it is known from DE-OS 17 60 857 to employ a cutting element in the form of a chisel-shaped cutting knife which is cutting transverse to the direction of the sliver. The cutting knife is linearly inserted into a stretched cutting channel by passing it through a sliver channel whereby the cutting channel is provided with upper and lower contact edges, in order to avoid offset during the cutting step. This cutting knife is inserted in a sudden manner due to a supported piston-cylinder control unit. The sliver is pulled via calender rolls. When the sliver is separated from the rolls a further transport is not ensured. A breakdown is the result.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a can coiler with a sliver cutting device which does not have any negative effects on the transport of the sliver so that the quality of sliver is not negatively influenced and for which it is irrelevant whether the slubbing is a short fibered woven material of vegetable or animal origin or, in particular, whether it is made of endless respectively long filaments such as synthetic fibers.